WEIRD HISTORY
By Melissa Sartore – At the height of Pancho Villa’s banditry, the United States sent federal troops to the Mexican border to avenge his actions against Americans. The Mexican revolutionary ventured into the US several times, most notably engaging American forces in Columbus, NM, …
By Genevieve Carlton Updated 2019 Aug 29 – Many enslaved people escaped following the North Star to freedom, crossing hundreds of dangerous miles until they reached Canada. But thousands also traveled the underground railroad to México, swimming across the Río Grande to …
By Mike Rothschild – Updated 2020 Mar 25 – What was the Silk Road? The history of the Silk Road begins with the Persians of 500 BCE and stretches all the way to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 CE. As one …
By Carly Silver Updated 2019 Nov 05 – You probably know Joan of Arc as a tough-as-nails warrior maiden from France, but there’s a lot more to the rags-to-riches-to-rags story of this smart soldier than just that. So who was Joan of …
The legendary trail has carved itself into American history—and, in some places, into the earth itself. A painted depiction of the Oregon Trail by Albert Bierstadt 1869. (Creative Commons) – By Jennifer Billock, SmithsonianMag.Com – A painted depiction of the Oregon Trail by …
By Katherine Ripley – Updated 2019 Jun 11 – If Abraham Lincoln had heeded the warnings that his life may be in danger, the course of history may have been very different. In fact, if you look back through history, you’ll find …
By Loryn B – Unless you are an avid historian, it’s very likely that you can’t seem to figure out how ecstasy and Titanic have one thing in common. And you probably couldn’t figure out how Marilyn Monroe and Queen Elizabeth are somehow …
By Melissa Sartore – Updated 2019 Nov 12 – The Aztec, a collective of Mesoamericans who thrived from the 14th to the 16th centuries, were the inheritors of ancient cultural traditions from their Olmec, Mayan, and Toltec predecessors. Aztec hygiene practices reflected …
By David Sharp Updated 2019 Dec 28 – City 40, or what is today known as Ozersk, is a closed city in Russia that the Soviet Union created during the Cold War. City 40 didn’t appear on any maps until 1991, allowed no outsiders to …
Scientific pioneer June Almeida is finally being acknowledged for virology breakthroughs she made a half century ago. Scientist June Almeida operates an electron microscope in 1963 at the Ontario Cancer Institute in Toronto, Canada. One year later, Almeida would become the first person …
